Dressage

Laura Tomlinson

Laura Tomlinson MBE — competing for much of her career as Laura Bechtolsheimer — is one of the defining figures in the modern British dressage era. Born in Munich in 1985 to a German father and British mother, she grew up around high-performance horses at the family yard at Lechlade in Gloucestershire, where her father Dr Wilfried Bechtolsheimer assembled one of Europe’s strongest dressage operations. She made her senior Great Britain debut in 2006 and never looked back.

Mistral Hojris and the London 2012 breakthrough

Her defining partnership was with the Danish-bred gelding Mistral Hojris, universally known in the sport as “Alf.” A bay of modest breeding but extraordinary temperament, Alf was produced patiently through the grades and became one of the most consistent Grand Prix horses of his generation. The pairing peaked at the London 2012 Olympic Games, where a scoring round at Greenwich Park helped Britain to a historic first team gold medal in dressage — a result that changed the complexion of the sport in the UK overnight.

In the individual Grand Prix Freestyle that followed, Tomlinson produced a personal-best score and took the bronze medal, behind Charlotte Dujardin and Adelinde Cornelissen. That Olympic week — with Carl Hester, Dujardin and Tomlinson combining for team gold — remains the high-water mark of British dressage.

Championship Record

  • Olympic Games: Team bronze (Beijing 2008), Team gold & Individual bronze (London 2012)
  • World Equestrian Games: Team silver & Individual silver (Kentucky 2010)
  • European Championships: Team medals across 2007, 2009 and 2011 cycles; Individual silver (2011 Rotterdam)
  • National Titles: Multiple British Grand Prix Freestyle Championships

After Mistral Hojris

Following Alf’s retirement in 2013 — he was paraded at Olympia and later turned away at the family farm — and her marriage to England rugby international Mark Tomlinson, Laura shifted much of her public work to coaching, broadcasting and the family’s breeding operation. She has brought through several younger Grand Prix horses and remains an active supporter of Team GBR’s World Class Programme, whose development pathway she herself came through.

On broadcast, Tomlinson is now a familiar voice on British dressage coverage — at Hickstead, Olympia and the Global Champions Tour — and a regular presence at the London International Horse Show. Her work with Dressage Anywhere and the Young Horse circuit continues to bring through the next wave of GBR dressage internationals.

Horses associated with Laura Tomlinson

  • Mistral Hojris (Alf) — double Olympic medallist, Grand Prix 2006–2012
  • Andretti H — Grand Prix campaigner, team medal support 2013–2015
  • Rubin-L — developed through small tour to Grand Prix